Time for another letter to America!! To give an update on how things are going in the old world. It's been 15 months since the boat arrived at the harbor... or I guess when our Finnair flight hit the ground in Helsinki. A lot has truly taken place since...
The move itself. Getting an apartment, and trying our first little jumps and hops, like a babybird learning how to fly, in a new country. Starting to build a new house. Starting a new business. New schools, language, Dr's, blah blah blah....
We moved again, and now live in the house we started building, the new company is growing roots, things are picking up.
A new baby is on the way.
The kids have a year of school here stuffed in their backpacks of life.
Lately there have been many things happening back in Canada and USA. Some friends of mine are expecting babies right around the same time as I. I'd love to "grow big" along side with them. I miss them. A dear friend has moved on to eternity, and she'll be missed. One of my dear sister-in-laws won't be my sis-in-law much longer... and that hurts, but she know's she'll always be my special L. I wish I could be there for many reasons at times. I get "homesick" for people. Sometimes for places too, but not much. I don't miss "stuff", I miss people.
Here I have laid the ground work for new friendships. Looking back in my life, I realize that I've "started new" many many times. Becoming a new friend to someone does not scare me. I love meeting new people, and I find that everyone is interesting in their own way. One thing I miss here is my ability to talk to anyone I want to. I like to talk to old ladies, but here the language barriare slows me down a lot. Very frustrating at times. After learning Swedish growing up, and now also being fluent in English, makes the road of learning Finn seem very long and bumpy at times. (I know how much work is involved in becoming equally fluent in 2 languages) I'm not 18 anymore either... The age I was when I spent 2 months in USA and learned English.
Now I'm mostly at home during the weeks, so the opportunities to use Finnish are sometimes far in between. Lately I've been to some "in home sales" parties. Great chance to practice Finn! And to listen to the person presenting their products. I actually "get it" every now and then. Finn is very different from most languages, so it's not like it "sounds like" or resembles any of the common Europeean languages either (which would greatly help me out). So. I struggle. And I'm taking small steps forward.
At least I can relate to how the kids feel! They are fortunately catching on faster than their mom thou...
We are going through our 2nd fall here, and it's interesting to experience the seasons change for the 2nd time. I'm curious and a bit scared to see if this February will be as cold as last one. Will we still have tons of snow at the end of March? Right now the trees are all dressed in sparkling colors, but their gowns are falling rapidly. Soon we'll hit that gray November... and I'll be looking forward to snow to brighten up the days. It's already getting dark quite early, and it's only getting darker. We are planning to spend Christmas at home. I hope I have energy to bake all the traditional Christmas goodies, and spend the holiday relaxing in front of the fireplace.
So... the latest review of life here?? It's good. I still like the fact that things are so close. I still don't miss crossing the international border crossing between Windsor and Detroit. I don't miss Detroit traffic, and my hubby stuck in it on the way home from work... We have seen each other a lot more this year, and that was one of our goals. The kids are adjusting, and they seem happy over all. Of course they miss their friends and realtives over there, just like I do! But you'll always miss somebody... especially when your family live very spread out! But as long as we are content in the moment, and with what we have each day, those things become easier to handle.
Some people ask if we are staying here, we originally talked about living here for 2-3 years. Some people said before we moved "Oh, you'll be back here in 2 years!" others predicted we won't come back at all. (besides for visits) At this point I think we are staying here for many years to come. 1st of all, I'm not interested in uprooting and moving our kids every few years, especially since moving back to where we used to live would not be an option. So if we moved back, it would be starting new all over again, in a new city etc. Does not sound appealing right now. Some of the reasons that made us move in the 1st place, we really would miss moving back, and why "fix" something if it's not broken??
I like to tell the kids that this is where we live now, feel free to root yourself.
If they knew that "We might be moving back in 2-3 years", would they dare to fully spread their wings and embrace all the new? And then after a few years, we aren't able to move back, and they feel disappointed?
I don't know if there is a "right or wrong" way to do a big life change like this, but being honest makes it easier. And I couldn't honetly tell them "in 2 or 3 years this or that will happen!" That's impossible!
Who knows what will happen in the next few years?? Besides, then our oldest kids will be in highschool, and highschool here and overseas is very different, so the older the kids are, the harder a move would be.
2 years ago it seemed very strange to move here. I was almost due with our youngest, and our overseas plans were just starting to gain momentum. So much have happened since then, and I guess time will tell how this move has changed our lives for better and worse. I like to look at the good stuff thou, and so far, so good! I realize that giving a timeline for a move like this is really quite pointless (unless you move on a one or two year work visa, where your company helps you with the moving costs, and you plan on returning to your old place, that's different). We sold our house, brought all our belongings with us, my husband quit his job... so after cutting all the ties like that, it's a lot more work going back.
So.... now you know where that stands! I guess we are Finns now! :)
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Monday, October 3, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
What's the problem???
Don't we all have bad days at times? Days when we wonder how our lives turned out the way it did. Why am I doing this? Why does he have a better job, a faster car, more money etc? Yes, that's perfectly common and I believe normal.
What I don't get is when young, healthy, able bodied people are complaining about their lives, making it sound like everything is somebody elses fault.
"I hate my job, I get paid crap, nobody understands me, I try to please everybody, but when I turn my back they take advantage of me and leave me in the dust" Whine whine and more whine.
I think some people need to give their heads a good shake and take a hard look in the mirror.
First of all, if you truly hate your job, why don't you change it??? Can you retrain in something? Take a course? Who are you benefitting if your work really suck? Have you asked your boss if you can make your tasks more interesting or challenging? How?
Remember, no one will come and thank you for putting up with things you didn't like.
You will not get a medal or great friends along the way.
You'll get bitter, bored, and the people who hang out with you are most likely suffering the same problems. And you tear each other down, and steal each others energy.
I have a feeling that some people might thrive on complaining. The job itself is not the true problem.
Of course there are times when we have to hold on to a job in order to put food on the table and keep a roof over our heads, and maybe going to this job isn't just thrilling fun, but do you ever stop and concider your options? Good or bad.
If I didn't have this job, would I be better off unemployed?
Do you ever take a minute and remember what your grandparents did in the past, during the depression, just to keep their families alive? Are we becoming spoiled with the opportunities of being able to pick and choose? Think about your boss that hired you, and you feel no gratitude towards that person... Is that right?
I'm a strong believer in being thankful for what you have, instead of missing what you don't.
In doing things for yourself, not expecting others to serve you.
Rather serve others.
If you are unhappy at work, and just can't do anything to change it at the moment, how can you change your sparetime to make that time more fulfilling?
Do you know elderly who you can help out? Run errands, mow the lawn, clean their home?
Do you know families with young children that might appreaciate a helping hand?
If you fill your sparetime with helping others, with a smile on your face and without expecting anything back, maybe your life will become fuller, and your job might even become a bit easier to handle?
At least you know that at the end of the day there might be somebody waiting for you to show up, to help them out.
We all have one life to live, and we choose ourselves how this time is spent.
You can not blame others for how things turned out.
Some people have gone through some really hard times, because of how others have treated them, but at some time we all need to realize that
"I am me now. My happiness is my own matter. What's past is past, what is done is done, but now I will surround myself with people who give me good energy, who are positive, and I myself am going to try to be my own best friend."
If you like who you are, and feel that you'd be your own friend, then being alone and being bored isn't so bad, at least you are in good company!!
When you point fingers and say
"I trusted that person, and he or she failed me, I'll never forgive them!",
you become bitter and full of hatered, and the only person that you truly wreck is yourself.
People will turn their backs, because you are stealing their energy.
And if you're not happy with yourself, why would others be?
You need to love yourself in order to be loved, and being able to love others.
This is not cliche', this is truly how it is.
"A bitter person was never thankful, and a thankful person was never bitter"
Good words to live by.
Even if we have days that feel less than good or fun, at least when we carry a thankful heart, we can go to bed feeling content with how life is, good and bad, and if we feel a need to change, we know the ball is in our own court!
What I don't get is when young, healthy, able bodied people are complaining about their lives, making it sound like everything is somebody elses fault.
"I hate my job, I get paid crap, nobody understands me, I try to please everybody, but when I turn my back they take advantage of me and leave me in the dust" Whine whine and more whine.
I think some people need to give their heads a good shake and take a hard look in the mirror.
First of all, if you truly hate your job, why don't you change it??? Can you retrain in something? Take a course? Who are you benefitting if your work really suck? Have you asked your boss if you can make your tasks more interesting or challenging? How?
Remember, no one will come and thank you for putting up with things you didn't like.
You will not get a medal or great friends along the way.
You'll get bitter, bored, and the people who hang out with you are most likely suffering the same problems. And you tear each other down, and steal each others energy.
I have a feeling that some people might thrive on complaining. The job itself is not the true problem.
Of course there are times when we have to hold on to a job in order to put food on the table and keep a roof over our heads, and maybe going to this job isn't just thrilling fun, but do you ever stop and concider your options? Good or bad.
If I didn't have this job, would I be better off unemployed?
Do you ever take a minute and remember what your grandparents did in the past, during the depression, just to keep their families alive? Are we becoming spoiled with the opportunities of being able to pick and choose? Think about your boss that hired you, and you feel no gratitude towards that person... Is that right?
I'm a strong believer in being thankful for what you have, instead of missing what you don't.
In doing things for yourself, not expecting others to serve you.
Rather serve others.
If you are unhappy at work, and just can't do anything to change it at the moment, how can you change your sparetime to make that time more fulfilling?
Do you know elderly who you can help out? Run errands, mow the lawn, clean their home?
Do you know families with young children that might appreaciate a helping hand?
If you fill your sparetime with helping others, with a smile on your face and without expecting anything back, maybe your life will become fuller, and your job might even become a bit easier to handle?
At least you know that at the end of the day there might be somebody waiting for you to show up, to help them out.
We all have one life to live, and we choose ourselves how this time is spent.
You can not blame others for how things turned out.
Some people have gone through some really hard times, because of how others have treated them, but at some time we all need to realize that
"I am me now. My happiness is my own matter. What's past is past, what is done is done, but now I will surround myself with people who give me good energy, who are positive, and I myself am going to try to be my own best friend."
If you like who you are, and feel that you'd be your own friend, then being alone and being bored isn't so bad, at least you are in good company!!
When you point fingers and say
"I trusted that person, and he or she failed me, I'll never forgive them!",
you become bitter and full of hatered, and the only person that you truly wreck is yourself.
People will turn their backs, because you are stealing their energy.
And if you're not happy with yourself, why would others be?
You need to love yourself in order to be loved, and being able to love others.
This is not cliche', this is truly how it is.
"A bitter person was never thankful, and a thankful person was never bitter"
Good words to live by.
Even if we have days that feel less than good or fun, at least when we carry a thankful heart, we can go to bed feeling content with how life is, good and bad, and if we feel a need to change, we know the ball is in our own court!
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Happy Birthday Big Guy!!
Well, I have a little tradition going here. I've written about my 5 year old as well as Miss 13 on their birthdays, and today is my Dear Hubby's big day, so I guess the turn is his.
This is his last year in his 30ies. The kids think he's, well, OLD! I think it's wierd to be married to a guy twice my age!!! Or did time just fly??? I bet his parents feel like he just became their age... He's the oldest of 7.
Well. This summer it's 15 years since our eyes first locked, and the bystanders heard an audiable "click"!
Or whatever the sound is when 2 people just fall in love with no warning.
I was the least romantic girl I knew, I thought all those romantic stories about "Love at 1st site" was a bunch of "Hooey". Stuff like that doesn't happen in real life. And I was very much real and alive. So of course it happened to me! I was almost mad when I realized that my mind was totally toast. I had a hard time focusing on anything else than Mr. And I talked about him. All the time. My poor friends.... (I thought LUCKY THEM that get to hear about this amazing person!!!)
The biggest hurdle for us was that I lived in Sweden and he in Canada.
No fun.
So, 11 months after our first meeting, we tied the knot in Sweden, and then I was officially imported into The land of Moose, Maples and Hockey players.
9 months later our 1st daughter was born. Our souvenier from our Greek Honeymoon....
When she was 6 months old, Big Guy graduated from University with a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
Around this time I became a Landed Immigrant in this great nation, and I was allowed to work.
I held a job at Pizza Hut while Big Guy was looking for his 1st job suiting his degree. Until then he'd worked construction, part time at Chrysler as well as a personal financial advisor. He landed his 1st "real" job with an apartment management firm in Detroit, doing accounting for them. This meant crossing the border every day. He patiently stayed with this company for almost 10 years, during which time we dealt with the aftermath of 9-11 in 2001 (I was 8 month pregnant w. child #3). For several months he had to get up at 4 o'clock in the morning to beat the traffic on the way in to the States. The customs was extra cautious after the terrible terrorist attacks, so all the cars were searched on a daily basis. You have your 6000 something daily commuters, many crossing around the same time each morning... so you can imagine the lineups!!!
This is also the busies international bordercrossing for commercial traffic in the world, so the trucks would line up for hours on end .
I don't know how Big Guy dealt with this all those years. He's a very patiend man, let me tell ya!!
He switched jobs in Sept. 2008, still working in Detroit, but this was better in several ways, and he sure needed a change. That following spring, he went to Finland to help one of his brothers build his house, and he so enjoyed himself, he felt that THIS is what he really wanted to do!
He was sick of the commute, and the office ho-hum. I sure don't blame him.
He wanted to bulid a house too, and I said, "Sure, but only if we also move there, it has to be an experience for the whole family!"
This is 2 years ago, and now we've lived here for almost a year!
Big Guy is truly enjoying the change of work. No more sitting on your butt all day.
At times the weather has been pretty brutal (just before Christmas they had a deadline to meet, and they were out in -25 C, not being able to use the powertools, they were too cold. I joked and said that using the hammers will keep you warmer at least!), but then he has thought about the option of sitting stuck in traffic, or dealing with various people that know how to NOT make your day... and the cold all of a sudden seemed perfectly fine!!!
What else???? I could ramble on and on about this guy, and mostly it would be really good stuff. I don't know a person who does not like my hubby!! He's an easygoing dude, who gets along well with everybody. He smiles quickly and is a great listener. He's a fun dad, who sometimes talks in extremes... He likes to explain how things work, and is a great math teacher. I love his humor, and in any situation he'd be the person I'd take with me. He's truly my best friend, and I thank God he's mine!!! And I'm praying for many, many years together. Happy Birthday my dear Hubby, I Love you forever and always!!!!
This is his last year in his 30ies. The kids think he's, well, OLD! I think it's wierd to be married to a guy twice my age!!! Or did time just fly??? I bet his parents feel like he just became their age... He's the oldest of 7.
Well. This summer it's 15 years since our eyes first locked, and the bystanders heard an audiable "click"!
Or whatever the sound is when 2 people just fall in love with no warning.
I was the least romantic girl I knew, I thought all those romantic stories about "Love at 1st site" was a bunch of "Hooey". Stuff like that doesn't happen in real life. And I was very much real and alive. So of course it happened to me! I was almost mad when I realized that my mind was totally toast. I had a hard time focusing on anything else than Mr. And I talked about him. All the time. My poor friends.... (I thought LUCKY THEM that get to hear about this amazing person!!!)
The biggest hurdle for us was that I lived in Sweden and he in Canada.
No fun.
So, 11 months after our first meeting, we tied the knot in Sweden, and then I was officially imported into The land of Moose, Maples and Hockey players.
9 months later our 1st daughter was born. Our souvenier from our Greek Honeymoon....
When she was 6 months old, Big Guy graduated from University with a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
Around this time I became a Landed Immigrant in this great nation, and I was allowed to work.
I held a job at Pizza Hut while Big Guy was looking for his 1st job suiting his degree. Until then he'd worked construction, part time at Chrysler as well as a personal financial advisor. He landed his 1st "real" job with an apartment management firm in Detroit, doing accounting for them. This meant crossing the border every day. He patiently stayed with this company for almost 10 years, during which time we dealt with the aftermath of 9-11 in 2001 (I was 8 month pregnant w. child #3). For several months he had to get up at 4 o'clock in the morning to beat the traffic on the way in to the States. The customs was extra cautious after the terrible terrorist attacks, so all the cars were searched on a daily basis. You have your 6000 something daily commuters, many crossing around the same time each morning... so you can imagine the lineups!!!
This is also the busies international bordercrossing for commercial traffic in the world, so the trucks would line up for hours on end .
I don't know how Big Guy dealt with this all those years. He's a very patiend man, let me tell ya!!
He switched jobs in Sept. 2008, still working in Detroit, but this was better in several ways, and he sure needed a change. That following spring, he went to Finland to help one of his brothers build his house, and he so enjoyed himself, he felt that THIS is what he really wanted to do!
He was sick of the commute, and the office ho-hum. I sure don't blame him.
He wanted to bulid a house too, and I said, "Sure, but only if we also move there, it has to be an experience for the whole family!"
This is 2 years ago, and now we've lived here for almost a year!
Big Guy is truly enjoying the change of work. No more sitting on your butt all day.
At times the weather has been pretty brutal (just before Christmas they had a deadline to meet, and they were out in -25 C, not being able to use the powertools, they were too cold. I joked and said that using the hammers will keep you warmer at least!), but then he has thought about the option of sitting stuck in traffic, or dealing with various people that know how to NOT make your day... and the cold all of a sudden seemed perfectly fine!!!
What else???? I could ramble on and on about this guy, and mostly it would be really good stuff. I don't know a person who does not like my hubby!! He's an easygoing dude, who gets along well with everybody. He smiles quickly and is a great listener. He's a fun dad, who sometimes talks in extremes... He likes to explain how things work, and is a great math teacher. I love his humor, and in any situation he'd be the person I'd take with me. He's truly my best friend, and I thank God he's mine!!! And I'm praying for many, many years together. Happy Birthday my dear Hubby, I Love you forever and always!!!!
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